for giving us the most brilliant 2 performances at the recent Worlds in Nice which I will never forget, along with your other many performances in the past.

On such a night, I can easily let myself forget about the tensions created during competitions, all the boo-boos about points or placements afterword, or even forget that I am actually watching a competition. On such a night, out of many nights you have already given me Dai, when I get to see performances full of your life, heart and passion, I just let myself enjoy the moments with sheer joy of figure skating and pure love for the sport.

Thank you again Daisuke:

for not having given up your skating when injured your knee, for not having retired after 2010 Vancouver Olympics, for having decided to continue even after such disappointing 2010-11 season for you, and giving fans more opportunities to get to see your performances from now on.

Thank you David Wilson, Pasquale Camerlengo and Kenji Miyamoto:

for creating beacutiful programs for Dai this season, which many believe a 'masterpiece' without doubt.
You are such great choreographers who can create beautiful, original, unique, the one and only in its own way, while properly, courteously and professioanally coping with COP rules, which sometimes sound so stupid (oops, apologies for my rudeness!). I indeed look forward to more of such brilliant programs choreographed by you for Dai.

Thank you Utako sensei, Takeshi sensei, team D1sk and many others:

for having always supported Dai on his good days and bad days. I would be even more grateful for you if you keep doing so, until he finally decides to take off his skating boots.

Thank you Skating God:

for reminding me ONCE AGAIN why I fell in love with figure skating years ago, whenever I feel a little uncomfortable with the irrational side of so-called 'grading sports, and/or want to turn my back on this sport.

And most importantly, thank you Skating God:

for creating Daisuke himself born to skate for the sake of figure skating; both as one of 'the most athletically-demanding sports' and 'finest-perfoming arts', and for the sake of its fans all over the worlds.

I am sure of myself, that I will watch Dai's performances at this year's Worlds in Nice, which are true 'gems', over and over again for many years to come, as long as I am a fan of this beautiful sport.

By posting the above and reminding it myself one more time, I feel much better now.

I was so much mesmerized by so many good FS performances in Men's field, which I had never expected prior to it. I was over the moon for Dai capturing the silver medal.

I started my fantastic night of figure skating by watching Mens FS via online steraming (which was kindly posted by aucer, thank you for that!) at 8pm in our time, then after 2 groups I went to TV for live, airing by FUji TV a Japanese network for another three hours. Then at midnight, having two cups of freshly-brewered strong coffee and chatting with my husband, who by the way is a big Akiko fan (we have a good taste for skaters, donot we?), waited until the start of Ladies FS.

Then again my husband and I went back to online streaming and overjoyed by Carolina and Akiko for their happy endings to finally reach one of their ultimate goals in its own way, to end our fantastic night at 5am.
I was so happy and excited for all skaters we could get to watch, that I could hardly get to sleep in the morning.

For me, Dai's was already the winning performance that night regardless his win or not, and I had no complain on the overall placements, because Dai made a costly mistake on his bombo jumps in SP, and because usually Patrick is much stronger in TES.

So I was just happy for his achievement and narrowing the gap between the two, and I thought it will give Dai another fire and determination next year.

Until I looked at the protocols.

After re-watching his LP a couple of times (first time out on live I was too nervous to notice it), I undersood how much Pasquale and Dai re-choreographed free program after 4CC, and how hard Dai and his team worked on it.

I just could not agree what the protocol tells me to agree.

Before checking the protocols, I thoght Dai lost in TES. But boy, it wasn't...Did not the judges see the same performance I saw? Did not they notice how many of transitions more added to his program? Did not they see he was just flying over the ice that night and covered the ice, say, 30% more than the previously choerographed one?

I understood his lower PCS 85+, because judges wanted to save some for later skaters who did outskate Dai in SP. But when these two skaters did not skate as good as Dai, why not the judges gave the PCS, at least on par with Dai's?

That was my first thoght. I just could not agree what COP forces me to agree.
I have no energy to read 75-page long thread on Men FS, or have the English vocabularies enough to challenge a debate with some of you who are so expert on COP rules...

I am okay with Dai's result, as usual. I can, somehow, always make peace with it. He is just such special to me as a skater.

But what makes me harder to make peace with is, for instance, when witnessing Brain, who skated 2 near-perfect programs and won audience's heart, could not even get on the podium. His programs might not be COP friendly. I know that. But he was the most cleanest who skated out of the top 7.

And when witnessing that judges always lowbelled Kevin Reynolds in PCS no matter what. I am no expert in judging, but even I could see how hard he and his coach have worked over the years to improve his weak PCS. And how much he has progressed as a skater, coping with what COP requires him to do, whether it might be a little by little, I could see it in him every season, and makes me smile every season.

I am a kind of burnt out and fet up with COP skating, it seems.
I need a break, a timeoff from it for the time being. Seriously...

I am planning to go to the World Team Trophy, already bought tickets.
Probably a good idea for me not to think about this sport I loved for so long, and to stop posting here until WTT is over, I guess.

But can I tell you something? Because I may go back to one of ordinary lurkers on this forums after World Team Trophy, or may stop enjoying this sport when Dai retires from competitive skating.

This rules seriously need some changes. Now. Before losing another popularity of this sport.

My sincere apologies if I have offended feeling of fans of other skaters.
My point is questioning about COP itself as the system, not any of specific skaters. I respect and love all skaters out there so much.

deedee1, thanks a lot for writing this! Especially and most of all, the part about Dai's re-worked FS.
I thought exactly the same thing, not even all of the changes were obvious to be seen at first, but it was enough for me to be extremly impressed with how much work Dai and Pasquale had put in it.
And that's exactly why I felt so sorry when his PCS were so low, and why I was afraid Takahashi might have been very disappointed with this - and might have even felt cheated on here. (and I think it's even more strange how Hanyus PCS shoot up nearly at the same time - I looooooove Hanyu, but for now, that PCS gap needs to be larger.)

I still don't think a sport should require you do have memoriezed some rules to be able or even 'allowed' to have an opinion and voice it (though I actually like the CoP in general). And to have a completly valid opinion at that.

Agreed about Reynolds aswell, and there are probably a lot more names one could think of, skaters that usually tend to be overlooked.
I really don't like conspiracy theories, blaming it on someone personally (like Patrick Chan), or simply explaining it with 'the judges are a corrupt bunch of idiots'. But with that kind of thinking, I'm completly unable to comprehend with those PCS marks this time.
And I honestly even felt Takahashi was a little underscored in the SP in PCS already, he was so on during that step sequence alone... I even prefered this performance to his NHK one, and his FS was the best this season for me too.

I don't understand why they marked Daisuke so low either, but I do know that this is a guy who's going to make skating look good now and forever, when the history of skating is considered as a whole. People who look back on great landmark skaters like Curry, Browning, Yagudin, and Plushenko will count Takashi among that number without question. Yes, Chan will likely be there too, especially if he grows artistically in the direction that his exhibition skate suggests. But there's no doubt that Takahashi is bound for skating immortality, whatever medals he wins in the future.

In Japan they have an official system that designates certain people as National Treasures. Skating has people like that, unofficially. In the U.S., Dorothy Hamill is certainly one, for example. But Daisuke isn't just national treasure. He isn't just a skater beloved by the fans of his own nation. He has fans all over the world, who are mesmerized by his musicality and originality. Many of us will root for him over our own country's skaters. This guy's achievements belong to all of skating, not just to the Japanese federation. He's a global treasure. That, to me, is the mark of a true skating immortal.

Not only that, but this particular long program, skated on this particular day, was a masterpiece. I could watch it again and again. Was he even moving on ice? So easy and flowing were his movements that he could have been dancing on firm ground, like Gene Kelly, or maybe somewhere beyond the pull of gravity. He gave us that music, he didn't just skate to it.

I can only echo the thanks to Dai for giving us two such marvelous and heartfelt performances at Worlds! Not even going to go into the scoring and the placements, because regardless Dai's performances were magic and I thought he seemed really genuinely pleased and happy at the medal ceremony, so congrats to Dai all around as an athlete and sportsman!

In Japan they have an official system that designates certain people as National Treasures. Skating has people like that, unofficially. In the U.S., Dorothy Hamill is certainly one, for example. But Daisuke isn't just national treasure. He isn't just a skater beloved by the fans of his own nation. He has fans all over the world, who are mesmerized by his musicality and originality. Many of us will root for him over our own country's skaters. This guy's achievements belong to all of skating, not just to the Japanese federation. He's a global treasure. That, to me, is the mark of a true skating immortal.

I don't understand why they marked Daisuke so low either, but I do know that this is a guy who's going to make skating look good now and forever, when the history of skating is considered as a whole. People who look back on great landmark skaters like Curry, Browning, Yagudin, and Plushenko will count Takashi among that number without question. Yes, Chan will likely be there too, especially if he grows artistically in the direction that his exhibition skate suggests. But there's no doubt that Takahashi is bound for skating immortality, whatever medals he wins in the future.

In Japan they have an official system that designates certain people as National Treasures. Skating has people like that, unofficially. In the U.S., Dorothy Hamill is certainly one, for example. But Daisuke isn't just national treasure. He isn't just a skater beloved by the fans of his own nation. He has fans all over the world, who are mesmerized by his musicality and originality. Many of us will root for him over our own country's skaters. This guy's achievements belong to all of skating, not just to the Japanese federation. He's a global treasure. That, to me, is the mark of a true skating immortal.

Not only that, but this particular long program, skated on this particular day, was a masterpiece. I could watch it again and again. Was he even moving on ice? So easy and flowing were his movements that he could have been dancing on firm ground, like Gene Kelly, or maybe somewhere beyond the pull of gravity. He gave us that music, he didn't just skate to it.

And he got the quad! This means that he'll only improve next year.

Originally Posted by rallycairn

I can only echo the thanks to Dai for giving us two such marvelous and heartfelt performances at Worlds! Not even going to go into the scoring and the placements, because regardless Dai's performances were magic and I thought he seemed really genuinely pleased and happy at the medal ceremony, so congrats to Dai all around as an athlete and sportsman!